Let the Rain Fall
by redroses100
Summary: After the scandal of the century, Jack is dismissed from the Guardians and replaced by Audra Tempest, spirit of the rain. Audra can't help but feel like the Guardians hate her for taking Jack's place, though she didn't have a choice. Now an evil being is rising and she needs to control her emotions before she is controlled, but can she with no support from the Guardians?
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note! So this is a follow up story to Dreams and Nightmares, but it also stands as it's own story (so those who don't read M stories, don't worry you don't have to read D&N first). But if there are any questions on what happened before this, feel free to ask me in a PM. Simply put, Jack is kicked out of the Guardians by MiM for being with Pitch and replaced by Audra Tempest. But the Guardians like Jack more than Audra and it hurts Audra's feelings. BTW, her name means 'Storm'. Anyway, I hope you like it._

I can't seem to stop sobbing as I run quickly through the woods. The torrential downpour around me hardly phases me as I go, in fact I'm the cause of it. If it weren't for my compromised emotional state, it would not be storming so bad. Not that anyone cares, or knows, about me. No one keeps the spirit of the rain in their mind. No one even has a clue who I am. So that's why I'm so confused as to why the Man in the Moon made me the new Guardian. It doesn't make any sense! After the whole Jack Frost fiasco you'd think MiM would chose someone awesome and special and useful to be the new Guardian. But no. He chose me to take Jack's place.

And while I've dreamed of being a Guardians nearly all my life, it's not what I thought it would be like. I'm not welcome with them. I can feel it. I mean they would all rather visit Jack in _the_ _Boogeyman's lair_ than spend time with me! They all hate me for taking Jack's place, but it wasn't my choice! MiM makes those decisions. But recently I've been wondering if I should just do something to upset MiM and get kicked off just like Jack.

"Audra?" I stop instantly and look towards the seductive voice. A writhing circle of shadows has appeared near me and from it steps Pitch Black, the Nightmare King and Jack Frost's life Partner. I try to wipe away the evidence that I was crying, but his analytical golden eyes see right past it. He can tell the difference between rain and tears on my cheeks. "This is surprising. Audra Tempest, newest Guardian of childhood and all powerful spirit of the rain... crying like a little girl?" He smirks ever so slightly and I narrow my eyes.

"What are _you_ doing here Pitch?" I hiss. His smirk widens to an evil smile.

"Just because I'm screwing an ex-Guardian doesn't mean I like the company of his "friends". I prefer avoiding the whole mess when they..._visit_ Jack. And these woods have always been a favorite of mine. I did not expect to find you running around and water-logging the place though." He points out, gesturing to the mud I'm ankle deep in. I hadn't even noticed, mostly because it rains where ever I go so mud is a way of life. This particular storm is kinda pushing it though. I try to think of something to take my mind off it.

"I heard Jack is expecting." I state. Pitch almost smiles genuinely before remembering himself.

"You heard correct. Who told _you_, if I may know."

"MiM. He's been talking to me a lot lately." Although usually I'm to angry with him to talk back. Honestly, I'm angry that he made me a Guardian. He knew the others wouldn't accept me in especially so soon after Jack. Be he still inducted me anyways.

"Ah yes, now that you're a part of the in-crowd." He sneers. I look down, away from his all knowing golden eyes. "What is this I sense? Are you bitter about your calling to the Guardians?" His smirk is utterly soul crushing. I turn to walk away from the entire subject but by the time I take a step he's in front of me again. "You don't want to be a Guardian. And I admit I'm extremely curious as to why." He grins eagerly, blocking my path with a Nightmare. The stallion beasts circle around the two of us with Pitch waiting for my explanation. But I'm really not in the mood for this bullshit right now.

"Leave me alone Pitch." I growl, getting annoyed when one of the stallions block my escape route again. However, Pitch is rather persistent.

"I don't think you understand Audra. I may tolerate the Guardians because Jack wants them around, but if I have a chance to bring them down, I will. And I warn you that I am not the only one willing to destroy your little gathering. You should be very careful who you see or speak to, but especially me. Because if I get the chance again, I will turn your fear against you and make you my puppet." His pure evil grin sends a shudder up my spine and anger pulses in my head. I flex my fingers and a crushing amount of water suddenly thunders down on Pitch. While he's sputtering and curing I run as fast as I can away from the Boogeyman and his present company of Nightmares. But I'm also running further away from my feeling regarding the Guardians. It's all I can do to not start crying again.

_OOOOO I was gonna stop here but that would be really short so here's more OOOOO_

Jack jumped slightly at the crash that sounded from out in the hall. His boyfriend, Pitch Black, stormed into the room, sending a glare at the four Guardians who sat around Jack. They all looked curious, but none more so than Jack, who tilted his head with a big question mark in his eyes. Not that this was unusual behavior for Pitch when the Guardians were around, but he seemed extra pissed off for some reason.

"You okay Pitch?" Jack finally asked when Pitch angrily sat on his Sand throne that materialized in the room. He motioned for Jack to approach him and collected the boy onto his lap once Jack got close enough. Jack couldn't help but notice that Pitch was soaking wet, but he didn't mind as long as he could help Pitch calm down a little. And Pitch always said there was nothing like a Frost Spirit on ones lap to feel better. Jack was just magic that way. Finally when Pitch felt calmer he heaved a heavy sigh and addressed North.

"I spoke with the new Guardian. She's a charmer." Pitch snapped, nuzzling against Jack's neck as he cursed little Audra Tempest in his head. He would probably never dry off from that cold plunge she gave him. Jack tensed at Pitch's words. New Guardian?

"Someone was chosen already?"

"Jack she was chosen months ago." Pitch scoffed, earning a few guilty and angry looks from the Guardians. Especially North, who had promised to keep Jack appraised on the situations. But when Manny called Audra barely a week after dismissing Jack, North hadn't had it in him to tell Jack. Neither had the other Guardians. From the cringe they all exhibited, Pitch could easily conclude they'd been trying to avoid the subject. Oh well.

"Why didn't you guys tell me?" I've been waiting to hear who it is!" Jack frowned.

"Well we thought you'd be a little...upset. Just barely bein' dismissed an all..." Bunny explained guiltily. Again Pitch snorted a scoff at the insinuation that Jack couldn't handle such news. Apparently Jack felt the same because his frown deepened.

"Jack is many things, but not _petty_, rabbit. Her name is Audra Tempest, spirit of the rain. She was chosen nearly 5 months ago. But I found out the strangest thing today. She doesn't _like_ being a Guardian. She feels...let me think, how can I accurately describe it..._ostracized_ by you four. Hated even. Her feelings were oh so deep and rich that I could practically taste them." All four Guardians looked very guilty at that and Jack's frown deepened yet again. He just couldn't believe his friends would be so mean!

"Is that true?" He demanded of the Guardians. No one really wanted to answer, but Jack's gaze was unrelenting.

"Jack we're all upset that we lost you! It's gonna take us time before we can really accept Audra as your replacement!" Tooth exclaimed. Jack shook his head and gracefully jumped off of Pitch's lap. Said Nightmare King looked annoyed at the loss but waited for him to speak.

"Pitch please take me to Audra Tempest." He pleaded, batting his eyes at the Boogeyman in the way he knew Pitch wouldn't be able to refuse. Pitch blinked a few times before glowing. But none the less, he help out his hand to his young lover. Jack grinned victoriously.

"Jack wait, we have the situation under control, we'll fix this!" Bunny said pleadingly. He didn't want Jack upset or stressed. Especially in Jack's current..._condition_. Jack simply looked at the Easter Bunny with a disappointed frown and took Pitch's hand. Shadows swarmed the two and consumed them, taking them out of the dark room to find Audra.

_OOOOO I was gonna stop here too but what the hell OOOOO_

I sniffle slightly as my feet swing over the edge of a bridge. After a while of running, I decided to sit. Lucky me a bridge happened to be available. And here I've been for nearly an hour just sitting. Cussing the Guardians in my head. I mean I get it that they're pissed over the Jack situation. But why do they hate me so much? Just because MiM decided I should take up his position I'm instantly on the top of the _I Hate You_ list? Screw that, this job isn't even that good. I'm getting ragged on just for doing what I'm told!

I mutter a string of unmentionables as I toss a rock in the stream that runs under the bridge. It's calming me down significantly to see the ripples on the water. But I'm still pissed the hell off. I can't honestly decide if this is worth my emotional turmoil. Is being a Guardian worth being looked at like I'm an imposter? Around me the rain kicks up a notch as my thoughts get darker.

"You should have brought a coat." I jump at the calm teenage voice I hear. A kid with a heavy jacket and secondary leather coat sits down next to me. He doesn't look at me, only out at the river from our vantage point. But this is weird. People have seen me before, but they usually find it weird that a young woman is wearing a tank top, jeans, and no shoes while running in the rain and they'll give me a second glance before dismissing me. This kid looks absolutely comfortable sitting there, like it's nothing. "I'm Jamie." He says finally, noticing the curious look I'm giving him.

"Um...I'm Audra." I say hesitantly. I wonder if this kid, Jamie, knows he's talking to an immortal spirit of the rain.

"Cool name. Means 'Storm' doesn't it?" Okay this is just really weird. What kind of teenager is this? He laughs at my thoughts that are apparently displayed on my face. "Bunny told me about you while he was visiting last month. I wondered if I would see you around."

"I don't understand, you know the Easter Bunny?" I demand. He nods.

"I know all the Guardians. And the ex-guardian. And I just kinda put two and two together, seeing you sit alone on a bridge in the pouring rain, looking just like Bunny described you. I only _look_ dumb." He gives me a warm full smile, one that I can't help but return. "You're prettier though. He said you're always broody, but you have a nice smile." Instantly I'm blushing and look over my shoulder to grab some more rocks, as a distraction.

"So are you excited for Jack?" He chuckles shortly at that. "What?"

"I don't quite understand it. How a guy can get pregnant. They've tried explaining it to me, but most of it just goes right over my head."

"I don't quite have a good grip on it either, but I'm glad for him. I bet it softened the blow of being kicked out of the Guardians." He shrugs. "This is weird for me. I haven't had a real conversation with a mortal in hundreds of years, so if I say something weird or wrong, let me know. It's probably an immortal inside joke." His eyes widen at this.

"Hundreds of years?" I nod. "But that's just with mortals. Cuz you talk to the Guardians."

"Well yeah. But the longest conversation I've had with one of them was with North. And he did all the talking while I stared at him like a deer in headlights." I explain. And frankly that's exactly how my induction went down. Tooth appeared, tossed me in a portal, and then North went into auto-drive. Telling me that MiM chose me to be a Guardian and then began reading the oath. Afterward I was promptly sent on my way because there was no need for me at the moment. They'd call me if they did need me.

That's the worst part of it. That they can call me and dismiss me as they please. Once a week they call for a little meeting, but they never ask me to stay after to chat. Or ask how I am. Today's meeting went really bad when I dared to ask what they were going to be doing for the rest of the day. As soon as the subject of visiting Jack came up, they all gave me this look that said, 'You're no Jack Frost and don't you forget it. You'll never be as good as Jack'.

"So you don't talk to mortals?" Jamie knocks me out of my reverie with the question. I shake my head slowly.

"Well I don't have many believers. The last girl who saw me was like ten and had just seen Tinker Bell so she was thinking in terms of little fairies who bring individual water droplets. Instead she saw me sitting in a tree catching rain in my mouth." He laughs before taking one of my collected rocks. He tosses it up a few times before down into the river. "Do you see all immortals?" I decide to ask the question this time.

"I dunno about all of them. But I certainly see a lot. After I knew for sure the Guardians were real, it got easier for me to imagine the reality of others. Like Lady Luck. She's fun. And the Leprechaun. Oh, and Father Time!" He smiles wide, and there's obviously a story there. But I'm really curious about one in particular.

"Ever seen Johnny Appleseed?" I ask coyly.

"Johnny Appleseed? No, I never even thought of him. Haven't heard of him since I was six." He remarks. I nod slowly, my mind full of the last encounter I had with Johnny. It seems like so long ago, though it was less than a year. I remember his apple-red hair and the beautiful green of his eyes. Like leaves on a tree. Jamie arches an eyebrow at the look on my face. "He someone special to you?" He asks slyly. The blush returns to my cheek but I adamantly shake my head.

"No. He's a good friend is all. The only one besides the Guardians I talk to on a regular basis. And the Guardians is just recent. Johnny has talked to me since I was made immortal." I explain, tossing a rock. He looks like he's about to say something, but then yelps and jumps up. It surprises me, but apparently not as much as it surprised him. He looks absolutely unsettled. A laugh like bells splits the wet air and Jack Frost walks onto the bridge. Then I see what made Jamie scream. Residue of a snowball is still sliding down his back.

"That wasn't funny Jack!" Jamie yells, but he's smiling. I wish I could disappear. Like right now. I knew I'd run into Jack eventually, but I was hoping for a few more _years_. I stand to slip away, but I run right into Pitch.

"Nuh uh, he wants to meet you." He snarls, pushing me back towards the two boys who have been talking about some sort of snowball fight later in the week. They say bye, doing some sort of overly complicated handshake before Jamie says bye to me and walks away with his hands stuffed in his pockets. Odd that he didn't acknowledge Pitch. The Boogeyman rolls his eyes as I look at him with a look that could be akin to snarky. So Jamie doesn't believe in Pitch despite the fact that Jack is pregnant by the Nightmare King.

"Hi, I'm Jack." He holds out his hand with that smile I've heard so much about. Mostly from the female immortals I've met through the years. Who knew Jack would be into Pitch rather than the many eligible girls out there. Including Tooth.

"Audra." I return, shaking his hand.

"I know. From what I can tell, we have a lot to talk about." That smile suddenly seems like a death sentence. But between his fast grip and the Boogeyman standing not far away, I get the feeling that I am not getting out of this. Great. Just how I wanted to end the day.


	2. Chapter 2

"So you're the spirit of the rain?" Jack smiles. I just nod, leaning rigidly against the bridge. Pitch has a similar pose as me but he's leaning against the opposite side of the bridge. Obviously he's not thrilled about this bonding session either from the glare he's currently fixed on me. But Jack is all too happy. "I've never met another Elemental Spirit before." He states happily.

"Are we rare?" I find myself asking, then want to smack myself for encouraging him. It's not that I don't like Jack, but I'm not a very nice person. I don't want him to get the wrong impression about me. Pitch certainly doesn't have the wrong one.

"I dunno. Pitch says no, but he may just be being a brat and lying to me. He does that." Pitch casts an annoyed glance at the winter spirit, but doesn't comment. I accidentally smile for a moment before stopping. "So...what exactly are you the Guardian of? Like I used to be the Guardian of Fun and all the other guys have their centers. So, what about you?" He asks curiously. I give him a confused look. No one ever clarified to me that I had to be Guardian of something. And what is he talking about with centers?

"I don't know." It's a simple way of summing up everything I've just thought, but it resounds in me so much more than I thought it would. I _don't_ know what MiM meant me to be Guardian of. Or even why he made me a Guardian. Jack frowns at the sad look on my face and changes the subject quickly, and to something completely random.

"Hey, how do you get around? I'm always curious. Pitch uses shadows, I fly, Bunny has the tunnels. What does the Spirit of Rain do to jump ship?"

"Uh, water. Anything from puddles to the ocean." His eyes get wide in curiosity and he smiles, asking for more information. "I just think of where I want to go and the water will take me there. It also heals me if I get hurt."

"That's so cool." He smiles. I do too. I can't help it. There's something entirely likable about Jack. Now I get why the Guardians prefer him to me. But, at the thought of the Guardians, my face falls again. Pitch perks up slightly, like he's keeping tabs on my emotions and I just gave him a pick me up. Then again, knowing Pitch, I probably did. "You okay?" Jack sounds so concerned about me even though we're just meeting.

"Just thinking." I shrug.

"About the Guardians?" He guesses. I don't shrug, or nod, or hint at anything, but Jack seems to know. He gives me a sad smile. "I don't know what's gotten into them. I mean Bunny's always been a little twat, but I'm surprised at North and Tooth and Sandy! Especially Sandy, I mean he's like the Zen guy who accepts everyone. He even accepts Pitch!" From the look on the Boogeyman's face, I can see it's not by choice that he's accepted. Pitch notices me watching his expressions and glares at me. I return the look. I wonder if he told Jack about our little talk earlier today. A familiar feeling of loathing courses through me at the memory and he smirks. "Okay I don't know how, but you guys are like communicating without speaking and it's kinda creepy." Jack informs us. Instantly the two of us look at each other and at him, not looking back at the other.

"She's just so easy to read." Pitch smirks when I can't think of anything as a response. I scoff and storm right up to him, holding my ground even when I realize he towers like a foot over me. I've had just about enough of him being a pompous little bastard.

"That's bullshit Pitch, you just know exactly what I'm pissed about!" I snap. He too steps forward, trying to intimidate me right back.

"No I don't because you'll recall you nearly drowned me before I could find out!"

"I'll do it again you exaggerated campfire story!"

"Go drown in a puddle you enchanted rain cloud!"

"Guys!" My anger instantly evaporates into embarrassment as I realize Jack is still here. A blush colors my cheeks ever so slightly at the look Jack is giving the both of us. Like we're little kids. Siblings arguing over who has to do dishes. Pitch has a similar look, like a reprimanded child. And Jack apparently thinks it's hilarious because he starts laughing uncontrollably.

"Jack it's not funny! She's nothing but a self important, woe-is-me brat who feels sorry for herself!" Pitch claims.

"Tough words coming from the man who hides under beds and is afraid of a golden man who's two feet tall." I point out. The look of absolute detest on his face is all I need to go on. "Oh, and Jack is it true what they're saying? Does the Boogeyman check his closet for Chuck Norris before going to bed every night?"

"Don't you have a monsoon to deliver to a third world country?"

"Don't you have some poor little kid to scare. No wait, you don't. Because kids aren't scared of you, are they Boogeyman?" I can tell I'm pushing it from the way steam is coming out of his ears. But before he can totally blow, Jack steps between us, still trying to recover from his laughs. But it calms down Pitch and I think I dodged a bullet. But his glares feel all the more heated now.

"I like you Audra. You're not afraid to take a swipe at Pitch. No offense love." He sends a smile at Pitch that's so innocent and angelic that a penguin is probably squealing in ecstasy right now. And apparently his smile is Pitch's weakness because suddenly the Nightmare King looks like he's struggling to remember the battle that just went down (which I won). Instead he steps up possessively behind Jack and wraps his arms around the frost spirit. "You should come visit with the Guardians sometime. Maybe you can keep Pitch amused while they talk." He invites, though I can just imagine how thrilled Pitch would be at the idea if he wasn't currently stuck in Jack-Land. "Oh, and there's gonna be an awesome snowball fight later this week in Burgess! Jamie says I should bring you." He winks for some reason.

"Uh, maybe. I guess it depends on if something goes down before it that prevents my attendance." I say, although I probably won't go. He gives me a big smile despite his obvious knowledge of my intentions.

"So, see ya later? I mean, I'd like to. You seem pretty cool Audra." He insists, though I can't for the life of me imagine where he got this notion of me being nice! Didn't the little bicker fest Pitch and I just have tip him off? But I nod. He grins and waves slightly ,and Pitch gratefully takes it as the end of the conversation and summons his shadows to take the two away. I stare at the weird event as it happens, then at thin air once they're gone. I don't know exactly what to do now. If Jack came to find me, I have no doubt the Guardians will be bitter. They've been hiding me from Jack for months now, and apparently they've failed. Great. Another reason for them to hate me. I never asked for any of this. And I'm pretty sure it wasn't in the job description.

Instead of stewing over the subject, which would eventually end in me feeling sorry for myself and cussing out the Guardians, I start to walk, looking around. Burgess. I have no idea how I ended up in Burgess. Probably fell into a lake while I was upset and popped up here. Sometimes I do that. But Burgess isn't known for record rainfall like some other places, so I best be off. Someplace it does rain a lot. Maybe Washington. I've always like Washington. But...I haven't been to the Amazon in a long time. And it's called a Rain Forest for good reason. Spying a puddle of murky water, I think of the beautiful forest before stepping into the water. I'm only ankle deep when suddenly someone's pulling me out of the water and into a big ass bear hug.

"I thought I sensed a nuisance!" The annoying New England accent of Johnny Appleseed is usually like music to my ears. But right now, I could cry at how much I missed it. I wrap my arms around his neck once I realize it's him and sob quietly. "Well if I knew you were gonna be all emotional I woulda let ya go." He jokes, tucking my hair behind my ears.

"Sorry, I just...it's been a long day. You have no idea how happy I am to see you Johnny." I give him the best, most fake smile I can. But, knowing me as well as he does, he sees through it in a moment.

"Whats up kid? I knew something was going down, what with the big storms recently. But...you just look terrible." I sniffle a laugh.

"Thanks Johnny, always the charmer." He laughs to before bringing me to his chest again, running his fingers through my soaked hair. "It's funny. I was just talking about you today." I recall my conversation with Jamie. He chuckles.

"I heard. I also heard Jack Frost calling you a Guardian." His face is something quite akin to priceless. A mix of disbelief and confusion. Pretty much my face when I was called. I scratch the back of my head with half a smile. How am I gonna explain this to him?

OOOOO

North paced the dark shadowy room as they waited for Jack to return. None of the Guardians wanted to leave, in case Jack would be back soon. But they were also worried that Jack would be mad at them once he came back. An hour came and went and still they waited, North pacing the entire time. It was starting to drive the others insane, but no one had the heart to ask him to stop. After all, it was all their faults that he was pacing and Jack was off with Pitch and Audra. If only they'd talked with Jack about her instead of hiding her. And if only they'd been nicer to the girl. Every one of them thought they could justify keeping her at arms length but really they all felt _guilty_.

"A lovely emotion. I enjoy it immensely." All of the Guardians eyes went to the doorway where Pitch leaned, a sarcastic smirk on his face. Jack was just to his side, not bothering to ask what Pitch was sensing. He knew from the looks on his friends face it was probably something unpleasant and uncomfortable. Before any of them could start talking, he help up his hand.

"I don't know, and I don't want to know, why you've been treating Audra so poorly. Ignoring her and making her feel hated. But I'm ashamed of all of you. Especially you two Sandy and Tooth! Bunny your kinda a turd so whatever, but North you were the one I looked up to the most. Acting like she's terrible for taking my place, it's just wrong. You guys are gonna make things right with her, or so help me you don't get to visit ever again!" They all flinched at the deadly seriousness in his voice. There was no stopping Jack when he was like this. Even Pitch knew better than to stand up to him when he got a purpose behind him.

"Jack...we're sorry." Tooth tried to explain but his eyes only darkened.

"Then get out of here and make it right." He demanded. She hung her head but nodded. "And the next time you visit, bring her with you. You guys really have to see the way she teases Pitch." A sharp glare and uncomfortable shuffling from the four was his only answer. He stepped away from the door, walking down the hall to his and Pitch's room. The Guardians hesitated before gathering their stuff and nodding to Pitch.

"Please, come again." A deaf child could detect the sarcasm in his voice, but no one was in the mood to argue or fight. They had to find Audra, because none of them wanted to not see Jack for even a short period of time. He brought fun into their lives with his quick smiles and quirky laughter. They all loved Jack and if they had to, they'd humble themselves before the rain spirit to prove it.


	3. Chapter 3

Johnny juggles a few apples as we walk, listening intently to my words. I tell him about being inducted by the Guardians, regretfully on their part. I also tell him about their bitter attitudes regarding my presence and how they never include me. He nods slowly, and tosses one of his apples at me. I catch it and wipe a smudge of dirt off onto my soaked jeans before biting into the sweet fruit. Johnny always has the best tasting apples.

"I always thought the Guardians were supposed to be nice." He observes, biting into an apple as well. I shrug, wiping away a dribble of juice on my chin.

"Supposed to be." I acknowledge. He slings an arm around me, taking another bite of his apple. He waits until he's done chewing to talk again.

"So why do you let them act like that? Walking all over you and shit." He asks. "I mean the Audra I know would never let anyone take advantage of her awesomeness. All the sudden you're hiding in some woods crying." He points out, frowning slightly. I guess I should be flattered that he thinks I'm awesome and is concerned about me. But at the same time, I feel like I should be insulted. That's just kinda how I feel around Johnny all the time. He's equal parts flirty and offensive.

"Uh I dunno. I guess I'm intimidated by them." I suggest. He makes a noise that's a mix between a scoff and a snort. He finishes his apple, tossing it over his shoulder before picking me up and throwing _me_ over his shoulder. "Johnny! What are you doing?!" I nearly scream.

"I want you to meet someone. Maybe it'll make you feel better." He suggests, then playfully smacks my butt as I continue to fidget.

"Ow! Johnny I swear to MiM I'm gonna get you for this!" I warn, but he just laughs. "At least tell me where we're going." I propose. He seems to think about it a moment and right before he's gonna tell me, he's interrupted.

"Put 'er down!" We both look to Johnny's left where Bunny is standing, boomerangs out and ready, in case Johnny is threatening me or something. Which is just weird to think about. Johnny threatening me and Bunny standing up for me are both so impossible, yet one is happening before my eyes. Johnny looks at me and I shrug, but he does as Bunny says and puts me on my own feet. "Now step away." Bunny commands.

"So, what's up doc? You got an egg up your butt or something?" Johnny scoffs and refuses to comply this time, instead stepping _closer_ to me. Bunny's eyes narrow.

"Bunny, it's okay, he's my friend. He wasn't hurting me." Bunny still keeps his guard up. "Okay, uh, Bunny, this is Johnny Appleseed. He's been my friend since I was made immortal. He's a bit rough around the edges and a brat sometimes, but he's harmless. Right." I nudge Johnny in the side, and he folds his arms over his chest. He doesn't want to let Bunny win, but he knows he has to right now.

"Yeah. Right." Bunny hesitantly puts the boomerangs down, but he still seems less than thrilled about Johnny. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the Warren." Johnny murmurs in my ear and I fight a smile, trying to seem professional.

"Rack off ya annoyin' pretty boy." Bunny growls, then grabs my wrist. "We gotta go." He's about to open a tunnel when Johnny grabs my other wrist.

"Hey why don't you ask her if she _wants_ to go with you?" He snaps, tugging on me a bit. But Bunny's grip is pretty severe. He hardly flinches at the potential threat of Johnny standing up to him. Even though in a throw down between the two, I'm not sure who I would put my money on. I've seen Johnny in a fight before and he fights dirty.

"Why dun you go find someone else to bother kid?" Bunny snaps, giving me a tug. I almost trip over my feet, but they hold me up with no problem.

"Why don't you get over yourself Kangaroo." Bunny nearly recoils at the nickname, and I can only guess it's because it reminds him of Jack. Even I, the loner of the immortals, heard about that. And that's exactly why Johnny said it. Frankly I'm surprised by him. He tugs again and I've about had it with their little back and forth.

"I'm not a goddamn yo-yo! Johnny if the Guardians need me, I'll go." I say, gently prying his fingers off my arm. "And I'll see you later. I'll probably be in the Amazon tomorrow." I explain. Bunny gives Johnny the most snarky smirk I've ever seen and just to tease him, has me climb on his back. Johnny tenses up, but I give him a smile before Bunny jumps into his tunnel. I've never actually been in one of his tunnels, but they're pretty intense. It's like a roller coaster on meth. Not that I've ever had meth, but the medical reports I've read say it's nasty. We pop up about a mile away from Santoff Claussen and Bunny wastes no time in taking off towards the warm shelter. I don't mind so much. I mean, between Washington and the Amazon I pretty much encounter every climate and I'm desensitized to pretty much all of them.

"You're really friends with that bloody wombat?" Bunny asks as we go. I roll my eyes.

"As a matter of fact, he's the only person who's ever given me a second thought. He may be crude and annoying, but at least he's nice to me." His ears kind of droop, but he doesn't reply. The doors open for us and Bunny slows down, letting me get off his back. "So what's the big emergency?" I ask, shaking out my hair. Water and snow fling everywhere, but it's nothing compared to Bunny doing it. He looks like a real rabbit for a second and I can only just barely contain my giggles. A passing yeti isn't so cautious about it.

"We're all meeting in the study." He says instead of answering. That's weird. I've never been invited into the study. Usually I'm not even here long enough for my hair to dry. We meet in the globe room, they give little summaries of their months, half listen to me, then usher me out before the elves can even offer me cookies. This must be a big deal if they're bringing me into the study. Ain't that just the saddest thing you've ever heard? But I follow him without much bitterness coming onto my expression.

"Here they are!" North bellows as we walk into the study. Him, Tooth, and Sandy are all around a grand fireplace, which Bunny instantly hops forward to, in hopes of drying and warming up faster. Tooth smiles and zooms right up to me, the biggest, slightly fake smile I've ever seen on her face.

"Audra thank goodness you're here! Come in, sit down. We have hot cocoa and cookies and cake and-"

"Hold on!" I shout, about fed up with this already. "What the hell is going on here? Did everyone just have some kind of hormone shot because the mood swings in this group are starting to piss me off." They all wince slightly. They know I'm angry, and frankly I don't give a damn if they get mad right back. After talking to Jack and Johnny, I've realized how fed up with all these fuckers I am. They're constantly giving me shit and now they're suddenly my best friends, smiling at me and offering me cocoa and cookies. The fuck!

"Audra we brought you here to say we're sorry." Bunny states bluntly. Okay. I was so not expecting that. My shoulders slump noticeably.

"We have been acting abominably. And with no justification on our part." North adds sadly. I can't believe this is happening right now.

"We were all angry, but we shouldn't have been taking it out on you." Tooth looks at her feet as she says it, like her shame is keeping her from looking me in the eye. Sandy makes some symbols with his sand that I only get a portion of. But it looks like an apology. I stare at them all for the longest moment, mouth hanging open slightly. Then my mind clicks and I frown.

"Jack Frost put you up to this didn't he!" Tooth and North's faces get red in embarrassment, Bunny's ears lower in shame, and Sandy makes a face that suggests I hit it right on the money. My frown gets deeper. Damn it! And here I was hoping they had really started to accept me. But this is all Jack. He probably issued some sort of ridiculous ultimatum unless they gave me an apology! And while it feels good to get one, the illusion being shattered just makes me angry. "God what is wrong with all of you?! You need to be threatened by a pregnant man before you realize that it's not good to act like dicks and that you should apologize? The hell! And I actually got my hopes up that..." I hesitate and shake my head. "I'll see you for our meeting next month." I snarl, about ready to turn and run out, but the doors to the study close. It surprises me, but only pisses me off more.

"I'm sorry Audra, but you were right about one thing." North whispers.

"Oh just one thing?" I snap, refusing to look back at them.

"Jack forbade us from visiting him unless you come with us. He's our friend, and we all want to see him. So you're coming with us." Tooth explains. I turn sharply.

"I hate you! I hate you all!" I yell. They all frown but it's Bunny who steps up.

"We're sorry you feel that way. Maybe someday you'll learn to forgive us for how we've acted. Hopefully." He sounds so calm and rational, and it makes me that much more pissed.

"Never! I will never forgive you! All I wanted my entire immortal life was to be a Guardian! Because I was told you were like a family, and all I wanted was a family! And you know what, they were right. You are a family. And Jack is more a part of it than I'll ever be so you all treat me like the red headed step child that the stork dropped off accidentally! And it makes my heart ache every time I'm around you, because if the Guardians can't accept me, really and truly, than who the hell will?" I can't believe I just said that. My hand flies over my mouth as tears threaten to spill over my eyes. They all look taken aback, like none of the stopped to really think that they were affecting me like that. That I had hoped for them to take me in when no one else ever had. Tooth is the first one to move this time. She slowly, ever so slowly, like she's working with a wild animal, flutters forward until she throws her arms around me.

"I am truly sorry Audra. I had no idea..." She murmurs, heart broken. No one speaks again for a long lone time. A few tears tumble over my cheeks and I try my best to wipe them away with a fairy latched on to me for dear life.

"You will stay here. With all of us." North suddenly decides. We all look at him in shock. "And we will all learn to love each other as family. Because Audra is family now." He exclaims with more gusto than his first statement.

"North that's brilliant! We can share a room!" Tooth is instantly agreeing.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What do you mean all of us stay here? I do have a job to do mate." Bunny points out.

"Bah, spring will continue without you and Easter was months ago. You can dedicate time for this Bunny. No, you _will_ dedicate time for this. We are all agreed?" Everyone looks around. Sandy's giving a thumbs up sign, Tooth is excitedly bouncing in the air, North is looking proud of himself, and Bunny is muttering something but caving. And I can only stand there. Looking every bit like the albino black sheep. Great. Me and my big mouth just turned Santoff Claussen into a virtual summer camp. Complete with hyper roommate.

But despite my pessimistic attitude, my stomach is clenching a little. A family. North said I was part of a family. Maybe not entirely yet, as there's still a long way to go before we're all hunky dory, but still. A family. _That_ I can't wait for.


	4. Chapter 4

_AN: Let me just apologize for how long it's taken me to get the chapter up. It's atrocious how terrible at updating I am. But this chapter is kinda long, for one of my chapters, so I hope it sorta makes up for it a little. Just a little. _

_Just a warning before you read this, there is a pretty intense, in my opinion, revelation at the end of the chapter. Kinda adult situation, but I think still rated T. But don't say I didn't warn you. _

OOOOO

I try to be as quiet as possible as I creep through the virtually unused hallway. It hasn't taken me long to find my way around Santoff Claussen. To learn all the ins and outs, and the spare hallways and rooms where the Guardians will never think to look for me. But just now, I feel like I've made a few wrong turns. Because I can hear jingling following me. And it's not North, because he's too tall for this particular passage. It must be the elves, sent to spy on me again.

Three months I've been here. At first it was okay. I saw that they were honestly making an effort to try to bring me into their fold. They were actually sorry for the way they were acting. And then after the whole apology phase was over, they wanted to get to know me. That was when I started investigating hiding spots. And I started noticing the elves and yetis listening to everything I said and making notes on it to report back to the Guardians. Little spies. I see a door handle that's so tarnished it almost looks wooden. Quickly and hopefully quietly I turn the knob and slip inside, silently closing it behind me.

"Pretty sneaky." I nearly jump out of my skin at the condescending Australian voice behind me. Instantly I move to leave again, but Bunny's paw lands on the door, keeping it shut. I glance at him under my hair. He doesn't look happy. "You can't keep running from us Audra."

"Says who?" I whisper. His scowl deepens and he sidles in between me and the door. I back away from the pooka, almost to the opposite wall. As he scowls, I glance around at the room I've inadvertently made a prison. It has barely been used. There are sheets over all the furniture, which includes a huge bed, a small couch, a desk, and a dresser. It's painted a deep blue with royal violet accents on the wall and the little bit of wood I see underneath the sheets is black. A spare room. Probably painted by Jack, as I heard he got very bored while he was a Guardian and painted all the rooms individually.

"What could be so bad about you that you're hiding from us?" He demands. I glance at the window, but it's locked. The lock is all rusted too, like it's never been opened. The door is my only way out, but not while Bunny is guarding it. It's impossible to get past him. "Audra." I glance at him, my eyes being caught by his emerald green eyes before I look down.

"You don't want to know me Bunny." I say finally. He looks a bit concerned before his face returns to it's unmoving mask. "I mean it. There's a reason only Johnny Appleseed has been my friend for all my life. He's annoying, but I'm..." I stop, my shoulders sagging a little. Again I see a bit of him wanting to rush towards me to comfort me, but he restrains. Tooth told me that Bunny is really much softer on the inside than the outside, but that he hardly shows it since the whole genocide of his race happened. The fact that I'm even seeing an _inch_ of his..._humanity_, is monumental. However, even though Tooth says I'm the only one in ages who's been able to exploit said inch of humanity, Bunny isn't going to move on this.

"I'm not moving until we have a nice long chat." He states strongly. I growl slightly and investigate the couch. I pull off the sheet and dramatically lay outstretched on it.

"Wake me when you give in." I hiss. He rolls his eyes like I'm the most childish thing he's ever had to deal with, but doesn't move. It's quiet for what feels like hours, but may very well be minutes. Bunny just looks at me as I pretend to be asleep. As stubborn as the pooka is, I don't think he understands just how unyielding I am. Guess he's gonna learn though.

"It's better to talk to me now than to be cornered by Tooth and North later." He points out. I make no move to acknowledge that I heard him. More tediously quiet minutes pass before I actually feel myself falling asleep. It's a short lived sleep, as soon as I'm unconscious I'm being shaken awake by someone with cold bony fingers. My eyes snap open to Jack Frost, his usual smile plastered on his face.

"Need an escape?" He nods towards a corner of the room that's broiling with black sand. Bunny's squaring off with Pitch by the door, but I can see it's not real combat. Just annoying taunting on Pitch's end and annoyed defense on Bunny's end. With a mischievous grin at Bunny I take Jack's hand and dive into the shadow portal, Pitch just behind us. The uneasy feeling of being transported over a large distance by shadow makes my stomach turn, but it's not as bad as I imaged it would be. And then I'm standing on solid ground, still clasping Jack's hand.

"Thanks." I smile at him, releasing my grip. He nods, floating a bit to kiss Pitch on the cheek.

"Thank you for letting me know." He tells the Boogeyman, who nods stoically, but I see his eyes are a bit brighter than before the peck. "Pitch saw the whole thing as soon as you fell asleep. Trapped by the Easter Bunny. I'm sure that was a fun experience." He wanders off down a hall and I follow him, Pitch trailing after the both of us at a distance. I glance at his belly as we go. He must be about five months by now.

"They're a persistent bunch." I acknowledge.

"What was he trying to find out exactly?" Jack glances at me in interest.

"They've been trying to find out about my past for the last like three weeks. And every time I try to distract them or bring up a new topic, they just seem to get more curious." I state with a pout. He makes a small sound and then opens a random door in the seemingly endless hallway. A kitchen materializes as he walks in, and I take a moment to gape. Pitch breezes past me with a smug smile on his taunt face. I glare at him, but it's half-hearted. Jack jumps up onto a counter, a bag of chips suddenly in his hands.

"Well now I'm curious." He murmurs through his mouthful of chips. He holds them out and I shrug, taking a couple before jumping up onto the counter across from him. Pitch sits at the table and watches us calmly. It's almost unsettling. "Not so much your past, just why you don't want to tell them. I mean, they're making an effort to get to know you, like you wanted, and now you're shutting them out."

"I never said I wanted them to know about my past! I just wanted them to accept me in. I just wanted...I don't know, I just wanted to not be shunned anymore. Now suddenly they can't hear enough about me." He offers me more chips, which I take.

"And that's bad because?"

"The content of my character doesn't extend as deeply as I would like. Jack if I started telling them about me, we'd have nothing to talk about after maybe a day. And in all probability they wouldn't want to talk to me ever again. If they knew what happened in my past, they'd be disgusted." Pitch perks up a little, more interested now. But at least he has the good sense not to ask. He'll let Jack do it for him.

"It can't be that bad." I raise an eyebrow and give him my best, 'you're kidding' face. "Can it?" He sounds slightly less sure.

"Let's just say I was no angel."

"But you weren't a demon." Jack states.

"I never said that." I grin a little ruefully and he grins right back. Pitch leans back again, obviously guessing I won't be spilling any past secrets today. How is it that the supposed villain knows when to back off, yet all four of the Guardians of Children just keep digging until it's awkward for all of us? "Thanks again for the boost. I was starting to run out of hiding places."

"You have to go back eventually." Jack says with a bit of a frown.

"How come?" I ask a bit sadly.

"Well, Pitch doesn't like slumber parties. And besides, they mean well." I have to give him that one. Despite how annoying they're getting, the Guardians are all trying to help me fit in with them. Something I never thought they'd do. Maybe it's just me. "Out of curiosity, where would you go? If you didn't go back to Santoff Claussen?"

"I dunno. I've always like Alaska and Washington. But I had intended to go to the Amazon before the whole house arrest thing went down with all of us." He nods thoughtfully. "I heard you liked to go to Antarctica." I try to switch this to him talking and me nodding.

"Yeah, it was my thinking place. I still go there sometimes." He looks off at a random wall, a sparkle in his bright blue eyes. "But I haven't been recently. Pitch gets worried about the kid." His hand goes to the bump beneath his sweater and a sweet smile lights his face. A matching one threatens to invade Pitch's sharp face, but only a bit of it gets through his mask of indifference. I think it's kinda of adorable the effect Jack has on the all powerful Nightmare King. Suddenly Bunny pops into my head. The way his soft cuddly side always seeps through just a bit when he thinks I'm sad or angry. I shake the thought away, but not before Pitch notices.

"Well this is certainly surprising." He murmurs, his smile growing mischievous. I narrow my eyes threateningly at him, but Jack's already caught what was said, and is now insatiably curious.

"What?" He demands, excitement on his features.

"The rabbit has a soft spot for the rain spirit." Pitch explains. "I really feel like I shouldn't be surprised. I mean the pooka _would_ fall for the one spirit who refuses to fall in love." He continues. I try to make my gaze more threatening, but it's far too late now.

"What do you mean? Audra, what does he mean, you refuse to love?" Jack pleas. I glance at him in defeat.

"Something that happened in my past. I don't want to talk about it. But he's right, I promised myself I wouldn't fall in love with anyone. Even Bunny. Which isn't a problem, because he doesn't love me Pitch." I snarl at the Nightmare King. He just smirks back at me.

"Yeah, how do you know if he likes someone?" Jack raises an eyebrow at his partner.

"After the genocide of his race, the rabbit because somewhat of a machine. Only three people have been able to see past it. Jack, when he used his peculiar magic to get the pooka to have fun. The child, Sophie I believe, when she used _her_ peculiar magic as well. And you. Now, since Jack is considered the rabbit's brother, and he still visits Sophie on Easter, what can you infer about his feelings for you?" He smiles.

"I dunno, I'm like his sister?" I state sarcastically, but I'm kinda afraid he's right. What if Bunny likes me? MiM, I hope he's not right.

"Maybe I should have clarified. It's stronger with you than with either of them. Nearly every time he sees you, a bit of who he was peaks through. He doesn't yell at you when he's annoyed. And he's much more concerned about you're past than the other three. Not to say that they're not concerned, it's just the rabbit has made an emotional investment out of the situation. He's practically vowed to himself to discover your dark secrets and then comfort you in any way necessary. Which is lucky for you because I think he's going into heat soon." His smirk turns slightly dark at the naughty implication and my cheeks glow red despite the fierce glare I'm giving him. Jack clears his throat awkwardly.

"You really need to stop reading everyone's minds." He halfheartedly scolds. Pitch shrugs, but his grin says that he's right. "Audra, it's not the end of the world. So what, Bunny has a crush on you." Jack tried to comfort me, but my horrified look just grows.

"You don't get it! I can't love Bunny! And he can't love me!" I shout, jumping off the counter and backing away from them a bit. Jack, concerned, practically throws the chips onto the counter and jumps up too. Pitch is right behind him.

"Whoa, Audra, it's okay."

"No it's not okay! Bunny is not in love with me!" I spit at Pitch. He glowers at me, but nods slightly. I don't believe that he's caving for a second. He still maintains that Bunny loves me. He wasn't just trying to get a rise out of me. He truly believes in his claim. And for some reason, that scares me more than anything. Jack, seeing that I've lost my fight and am just scared, creeps forward and hugs me.

"Look, whether or not he loves you, it doesn't have to mean anything. It's not like you have to marry him or anything." He jokes. I try to smile, but I'm sure it comes out more like a grimace. The room shifts around us to make a sitting room. Jack meanders away to a big armchair, sprawling over it with his legs off the side. Pitch gestures to a couch for me before sitting in the other armchair. No one says anything for a long time until Jack starts humming. I recognize the song from a college campus I visited a while ago. Some currently popular song that everyone knows, even immortals I guess. And from the way Pitch is narrowing his eyes, I can only guess he finds it stupid. I recall finding it kinda foolish myself.

"Welcome to my life." Pitch kinda huffs, reading my thoughts again. Jack ignores both of us and just keeps humming.

"Jack!" We all look towards the door and the voices coming from outside a ways.

"Audra!" I recognize the Australian accent of just-who-I-didn't-want-to-see. North calls out for me as well and I moan slightly, burying my head in a pillow.

"We're in the sitting room!" Jack calls back and I look at him with a look I hope conveys how much of a traitor I think he is right now. "They'd find us eventually." He shrugs. I just growl and bury myself back into the pillow. The door opens and seconds later I feel light fingers brushing through my hair. A habit that Tooth has gotten into. She likes my hair. She says it's the softest she's ever felt. I remember explaining to her that my hair has been wet consistently for nearly five hundred years, so when it is dry, it's usually nice and silky.

"Audra, are you sick? Are you okay?" She demands, worry in her voice. I glance up at her through my hair and she brushes it out of my face.

"I'm fine Tooth." I murmur, though I don't think she can hear me through the pillow, as she tilts her head curiously. I sit up and hold the pillow to my chest. "I'm fine." I repeat so she can hear me. She sits next to me and starts to fuss with my hair, making it all lie in order again. It's usually always messy, so she busies herself in fixing it when she gets distressed or nervous. Sandy takes the other cushion on my couch with a smile at me. I give him a small one in return. I like Sandy, he's like the cool uncle I never had. Bunny and North are still standing near the door, both with scowls.

"You had us worried Audra." North tells me in a big bad dad voice. Two more chairs have composed themselves out of sand, but neither of the Guardians have even hinted at wanting them. Between them being all intimidating and Tooth being all motherly, I can tell I'm kinda in for it. Jack chuckles slightly, still all stretched out on the chair.

"Come on North, you know I'd never get her into too much trouble." Jack drawls.

"Actually we were more worried she'd escape you too. Then we'd never find her." Bunny scowls at me and I roll my eyes, trying to duck away from Tooth's fingers. "Little minx." I think I hear Bunny murmur, but before I can raise it to anyone's attention, Tooth starts up.

"Audra honey, we're sorry we've been pressing the whole past thing. We just want to know you better. Even Jack told us about his past, once he found out about it." She explains. I pout a little and stand up, escaping Tooth's mothering.

"I'm not Jack. I don't want you guys to know about what I've done, or what's been done to me. Can't you just be content with who I am now?"

"If you mean a spoiled brat with insatiable mood swings..." Pitch whispers, but loud enough that we can all hear him. I shoot him a glare, but I'm really not up to the whole bantering thing today. Jack nudges the boogeyman with his foot and Pitch rolls his eyes.

"Come on Audra. We're not going to let this go. We're all concerned about you. If there's something bad in your past, we want to know about it so we can help you get over it." Bunny demands, hopping up close to me. I flinch away slightly, Pitch's earlier claim still tugging a bit at me. The way Bunny just seem so comfortable being this close to me, it's a little disconcerting to me. But...it shouldn't be. I hug North and Sandy and Jack all the time. So why is it so weird to be close to Bunny? Why did I let Pitch's stupid theory get into my head?

"No. I...I can't." I back up, my arms crossing over my chest. "I just can't talk about it." Jack catches the look on my face and floats gently between me and Bunny.

"Give it time guys." He addresses the four Guardians. "And maybe someday you'll feel comfortable enough to talk about it." He says to me. I nod, but I'm not convinced. Neither are the Guardians, from the looks their sharing. Still, what can any of them do besides agree? I'm too stubborn to say anything, which they've discovered, unless I feel like it's okay.

"Okay. We'll wait." Bunny says after a long moment of silence. "Let's go home." He supposes, nodding me towards the other three, who are now all standing by each other. I look at them and for a second I can see it. North, my dad. Tooth, my mom. Sandy, my uncle. But when I look at Bunny, all I see is a big question mark. A brother? No. A love interest? Definitely not. So what is he? And more importantly, what does he want me to be?

OOOOO

I smile at Phil as he mumbles on and on. He's talking about the elves and how annoying they are. But even with how quickly I learned Yetish, some of it goes over my head. They talk so fast. He makes a particularly rude remark about the elves, that I do understand, and I laugh. He smiles at my laugh and tosses me a cookie. We've been baking them all morning, and he's been telling me stories about Santoff Claussen and the Guardians and the elves for hours.

"Well aren't you pleased as punch." We both turn to look at Bunny as he walks in. He nods to me, trying to seem complacent, before investigating the fridge. Phil murmurs something about Bunny being picky and I giggle. "What'd he say?" Bunny asks.

"I can't believe you don't know Yetish. You've been around this place much longer than I have and you never learned it?" I ask, rolling out dough. Phil lumbers over with the bowl of cookie cutters and a couple of trays for me.

"Never needed to." Bunny shrugs, emerging from the ice box with a head of cabbage. He peels off leaves and munches on them as I start pressing the cutters into the dough. "Where do you hide the carrots?" He asks Phil. The large creature mumbles something, but Bunny just blinks at him. Finally Phil throws his hands up and gestures to me that he'll be back in a minute. I give him a smile and toss him a cookie for his travels down to the basement freezer. That's where most of the fruits and veggies are kept. "So, you've spent nearly a week in this kitchen. And I never knew you liked cooking before."

"There's a lot you don't know about me. And are you really so stereotypical? Carrots?"

"What, you don't like carrots?" He looks horrified for a second but I can tell it's sarcastic. "You know, all that stuff I don't know about you...I could learn." He states, leaning on the counter next to me. I ignore him, placing a couple of bell shaped cookies on the tray before going to the Christmas light shaped cutter. "Are you ignoring me?" He asks, acting insulted. I smirk a little but keep quiet. "You are! You're ignoring me! Oh, it hurts! Hurts in my heart!" I let a small giggle escape me on accident. "Gotcha."

"Dear MiM, I never knew you were so annoying!" I snort at him. He puts his paw on my hand as I go to scour the bowl for another shape. I look up to find he's alarmingly close. Instantly I scramble away, my heart in my throat and all hints of the good time banter from moments ago are gone. He looks alarmed, holding his hands up defensively.

"I'm sorry." He whispers. I know he doesn't know why he's sorry, but he can tell that whatever he's done has freaked me out. And for that he's sorry. It makes me feel really guilty suddenly. That he's sorry, even though he doesn't know what he's done. My heart sinks a little for him, and I feel like I need to say something.

"No, I'm sorry." I admit.

"About what?" He asks hesitantly.

"I can't be close to you Bunny." I state. He looks wounded. "I can't be romantically close to anyone." I amend, but he still looks pretty hurt.

"But why?" The soft pain in his eyes is just to much. I feel the event of my past weighing so very heavily on my shoulders as I look at his pained face. "Why?" He asks again. It spills out of my mouth before I can stop it.

"Because I'm a murderer." My hand immediately goes to my mouth. I can't believe I just told him! And obviously, he can't believe it either. Shock splits his hurt face into one of pure alarm. And the worst part is...he's _just_ looking at me. Not saying a thing. Just waiting for me to explain with that face that says so much and yet nothing at all. "Before I was immortal. I killed my best friend...because he wanted to hurt me. He was going to rape me. I didn't know what to do. He threw me against a mirror and it broke. And then he was holding me down. And then I felt something cold and sharp in my hand. I didn't know until later that it was glass. I don't even remember how it happened. But suddenly there was blood everywhere and Luke was looking at me like it was all my fault. Even that he was going to hurt me was my fault. So I ran away. And the tale goes that I cried so hard that it started to rain. And the rain has followed me ever since. I ran away and I died in the cold." I'm sobbing by the time I get myself to stop talking. And Bunny is still looking at me with that unreadable look.

"I...Audra." Bunny's voice is low, almost like a whine. He doesn't know what to day. I shake my head shortly, wiping away tears that are leaking from my eyes. He takes a hesitant step towards me, and I can't get myself to step away. So he steps closer, and closer. Until he's close enough to wrap his arms around me and hold me to his strong chest. "It wasn't your fault." I'm shocked at his statement. How could it not be my fault?

"You...you can't tell them." I sniffle. "I know why you're so accepting. Pitch told me. But they won't be. I just know they won't be." He jumps a little at the thought of me knowing he likes me, but otherwise doesn't react.

"They won't hear it from me." He promises, gently nosing my forehead. For some reason it makes me feel better. Being close to him after months of tension. Him hugging me even when he knows what I've done. What blood is on my hands. It feels right to be in Bunny's arms, even given the circumstances. "You're safe Audra. You're okay." He murmurs comfortingly. And for the first time in hundreds of years, I feel like I might be.


	5. Chapter 5

_AN: Hey guys so to avoid confusion in this chapter, Audra and Pitch have such a tense relationship because before she was a Guardian, he served as a kind of shrink to her. And then she became a Guardian and he felt betrayed and now they hate each other halfheartedly and etc etc... The best way I can think to describe them is that they do care about each other, almost like a dad and daughter might, but they are both way to proud and easily annoyed to admit it. So yeah, if you're still confused send me a PM and we'll talk. Enjoy!_

OOOOO

"Audra!" Jack looks surprised to see me, but the surprise is dwarfed by his smile. He looks at Bunny, who's standing a few feet behind me, then back at me. I can see the tiny flash of mischievous attitude in his eyes, but it disappears quickly. "What's up?"

"I need to talk to Pitch." I admit, letting my detest with the situation leak into my voice. Jack looks absolutely shocked, but Pitch, who's come up behind Jack, just nods knowingly. Bunny mutters unhappily but only shifts towards me protectively. When I told him I needed him to take me to see Pitch, he spent a full minute ranting about how it was a bad idea and how Pitch was still a creepy bastard, even if he was fathering Jack's baby. But once he calmed down, I got him to agree to taking me, and here we are.

"This way." Pitch, as stoic as ever, motions towards a hallway that's branching off from the door. I didn't even know their lair/home had a door. But apparently it does, right in the side of a big ass mountain. It only appears if you know where to look, so I guess mortals wouldn't ever know about it. Plus the mountains way out of the way, some god forsaken deserted land that no one even knows the name of. Hell, I don't even know the name of it. All the times I ever went to Pitch's lair before, I'd always just show up there, not even knowing how. But Pitch always knew when I was trying to reach him because suddenly I was in his home begging his help.

"Uh, we'll be in the sitting room." Jack says before leading Bunny in the opposite direction, confusion still all over his face. Pitch watches him go for a moment before looking down at me with a mix of curiosity and pity. I follow him quietly as he leads the way to where ever we need to go for a private conversation, which apparently is far far away from anywhere Jack is. Before, we'd just do this anywhere. Hell, I think there was a time it happened under the creepy ass cages. It seemed so much less personal then.

I frown to myself as we walk. As much as I hate the fact that I have to go to Pitch right now, I know it's my only option. Its always my only option. Finally, after a while of walking, he opens a door and steps aside for me to go in first. This room is similar to the sitting room, but with only two armchairs. I uncomfortably sit in one of them and Pitch, looking equally uncomfortable, sits in the other.

"This is unexpected." He states. "Usually you send word, maybe a bit of warning. Or you just weep in the forest, calling out for me."

"Are you gonna be a douche about this or are you gonna help me?" I sigh, my angry words turned pitiful by the exhaustion in my tone. Ever since I told Bunny about the Luke Incident, I've been having nightmares. Only I know they're not from Pitch. I know the difference between a guilty conscious constructed nightmare and a Boogeyman constructed nightmare. Even just talking about the incident for one whole minute made me slip into a state of torment that I know only Pitch can get me out of.

"Open your mind." He tells me softly, humbly almost. I think that even though I'm an annoying pain in the ass for him, he feels kind of bad for me. I don't think I've ever gotten this bad before, and he's seen me pretty bad. I've crawled to his lair on hands and knees in emotion agony many a time, as embarrassing as it is. And it was after the third time I came to him that our minds just kinda synced. It's the reason he can read my mind so easily. The reason I can't even try to block him out. Well, except about the Luke Incident. He's never managed to pry that out, even over the course of our "sessions", and now I'm willingly giving it up. He puts his fingers to my forehead like he usually does and pushes into my mind carefully.

With one last sigh of resignation, I completely do away with all the mental blockades I've constructed, letting him have free reign. He scans through all the things he's seen before, making sure to catch up on things he hasn't dealt with in a long time. But then I can feel his presence in that specially hidden part of my mind. That part he's never seen before. He hungrily devours the Luke Incident, swallowing my memories and emotions eagerly and quickly. I can see the event happening again in my head, as fresh and painful as it was when it first happened.

_I was cutting vegetables for dinner, laughing as Luke tried to balance a bowl on his head. Luckily it didn't have anything in it, because it kept slipping, Luke making a big fuss over it every time. I was laughing so hard I didn't even notice him wrapping his arms around me. And when I did notice, I didn't mind it too terribly much. People often said in my village that Luke and me would be married. And while I didn't want to get married, I knew I would have to eventually. I was already years older than most girls who married in the village were. My best friend Heidi was married at thirteen, and here I was, unmarried and nineteen. _

_I didn't make Luke let me go, instead pretending to ignore him and continuing with my vegetables. But then he started kissing me, holding me tighter. That was when I started trying to slip away from him. As much as I didn't want to get married, I was even more resistant about making love. I was scared of the thought even. It sounded painful and awkward, and Heidi said she bled the first time with her husband. But when I started trying to push him away, he got more aggressive, his grip on me getting frighteningly strong. _

"_Luke please stop, we shouldn't be doing this." I told him, trying harder to break his hold on me. He just made a sound that I could compare to an animal and pushed me back against the counter. Desperately I reached out for something to fight with, my fingers closing over the hilt of a knife. I wasn't trying to hurt him, just scare him a bit to make him let me go. But the blade caught on his arm, a long cut appearing diagonally from his elbow to the middle of his arm. The sight of blood, especially in my kitchen, almost made me sick. But Luke was distracted so I ran off, closing my bedroom door behind me, praying he wouldn't be mad._

_But he was. He banged on the door angrily, saying I was going to pay. That a woman had no right in denying a man. I tried to keep the door closed as long as possible, but Luke forced it open, sending me stumbling back. My footing wasn't even back to normal before he shoved me back harder, my back and head hitting the only mirror in the room. I fell into a slump on the ground, shards of glass all around me and blood dripping from little cuts made by the glass. I was stunned, too stunned to notice him approaching me. He grabbed me by the collar of my dress, trying to haul me back up. _

_Again my fingers gripped something sharp, sharp enough to cut my hand. So it would be sharp enough to fight Luke off. That's all I wanted to do. Fight him off. Make him get out and make sure he never came back. Somehow, everything went terribly wrong. My hand went up as his body slumped over, the combined forces driving my shard of glass deep into his collar bone. He froze, his eyes full of pain and disbelief. _

_His grip on me loosed and I dropped unceremoniously to the ground, the shards of glass biting into my legs and knees. Luke stumbled back a few paces before his knees gave out and he too ended up in a heap on the floor. His fingers searched numbly for the glass that was spilling so much of his blood. But when he found it, he couldn't even pull it out. Blood dripped from his mouth and he turned his hurt eyes to me. _

_'This is your fault.' His eyes screamed the accusation at me. 'This is all your fault and you'll burn for it.' The words were all too clear in those eyes. With one more blood soaked wheeze he twitched and fell still, his eyes becoming blank and unseeing. Just looking off at something I couldn't see. Maybe an afterlife, or some sort of hell if I had any sway in where he went. _

_I couldn't move for a long time. My legs felt like jelly. But eventually I stood, limping to his body and shutting his eyes. Then the reality of what just happened hit me hard, tears welling up fat and warm in my eyes and then pouring over my cheeks. I would have to run. I'd have to go far away where they couldn't find me. For a woman to kill a man, even if he was trying to rape me...it was unspeakable. I would be sentenced to death. And I didn't want to die. _

_With one more look at Luke and his bloody body I grabbed my cloak and a bag of the vegetables for dinner and ran out, picking a random direction and running. _

Suddenly I'm back in reality again. Pitch is just looking at me, his eyes heavy with the memories and emotions I've just given him. All the annoyance and rivalry between us just seems to melt and he reaches out for my hand. Nothing I've ever come to him about before has been as terrible as that. It's always been a simply fix. Like mending a pre-existing barrier, or build a new one around a memory so I can't twist it into a nightmare. Because the nightmares I have aren't from Pitch. They're constructed by my own mind, laced heavily with guilt and regret and pain. Everything wrong with me I do to myself.

"I don't know how much I can do." He admits, holding my hand a little tighter. "That memory is engraved very deeply in not only your mind, but your soul. To make a barrier around it would take not only an enormous amount of energy, but also time and patience."

"Isn't there something else you can do?" I whisper, my voice cracking even though I can hardly hear it. He noticeably reacts, but nods.

"I can erase the memory forever. Take it out of your mind, but inside you would always remember the feelings you experienced. The fear and the betrayal. The wariness you feel around anyone who is romantically interested in you would not cease. And worse, you would never know why." He explains. I nods slowly, my chest hurting with the weight of the situation. It's been hurting a lot recently. "However, there is another option." He adds when he sees my downcast reaction. I look up at him through my hair.

"Another option? I get three?" I'm not sure if I'm trying to be funny or sarcastic or what, but he doesn't seem bothered by it. Instead he nods.

"I could teach you to live with the memories and feeling. Rather than hide from them or run from them, if you could accept them...and then move on...you could be happy. Truly happy." Well that sounds to good to be true. I give him a look that I hope conveys my thoughts, and he seems to get it. "It too will take great time and effort, on both our parts, but I feel it would be more helpful than burying the experience or removing it." I look at him for a long moment, trying to decide for myself if it would be better to finally face the Luke Incident and deal with it. I've run from it for so long, it just feels natural to want to run. But...I'm so tired.

"Okay. If it will make all this stop." I finally sigh. He reaches out and puts a hand on my shoulder. It's awkward for the both of us, but no more awkward than the hug I forced on him during my fourth session. When he helped me block out the nightmare of my mother dying. "I've always believed him ya know." He looks confused. "Luke. The look in his eyes told me it was my fault. And I always believed him. Do you think it was my fault?"

"I think none of it was your fault. You were defending yourself, as you should have." He assures me. I try to smile at him, and he tries to smile at me. After all this time trying to hide my secrets, I feel a little uneasy about spilling them to not one, but two people. And I should probably tell Jack too, since I wouldn't want Pitch to be pressured into keeping things from the guy he's desperately in love with. And besides, based on the effect Jack has on Pitch, they probably wouldn't stay secret for very long anyway. Speaking of Jack, it's suddenly very awkward in here with just Pitch and me and no Jack.

"We should go find them." I point out, wiping beneath my eyes to do away with any evidence of tears. He agrees, helping me up as my legs are a bit shaky.

"We'll start tomorrow. It shouldn't take more than a few weeks, and it will be worth it." He tells me before opening the door for me.

"Thank you Pitch." I whisper and hug him tightly before straightening up proudly. "And I will deny that hug ever happened for the rest of my life." I tell him, making him actually smile for a second.

"As will I, I assure you."

OOOOO

I jump as the sound of glass shattering ricochets through the halls outside. I look towards the door expectantly, but don't get up, a book clasp between my hands. So much for quiet reading time. At least I got a couple of chapters in before all hell broke loose. Usually I only make it through a few _pages_! I'm just about to close my book and investigate when my door flies open and Tooth is smothering me in a hug.

"Oh Audra I can't believe you thought it was your fault! You poor thing, carrying that around for so long!" She immediately starts murmuring, fingers running through my hair. My eyes fly to my doorway where and out of breath Bunny is standing, his hands on his knees.

"I tried...ta get here...first. Ta warn ya." He huffs out through big breaths. "I didn't...I promise...I didn't tell...Sandy told." He adds when I give him a glare.

"And how did Sandy find out?" I demand through clenched teeth.

"He may or may not've seen a few of your dreams." Bunny winces as my eyes narrow. "I didn't tell him!" He maintains. With a sigh I bookmark my book and put it aside, returning Tooth's hug. I know she won't relent until I do.

"Why didn't you tell us! We would have listened! We could have helped you sooner!" Tooth cried maternally.

"I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want to think about it. And besides, I'm fine now. Pitch has been helping me for like a month now!" Suddenly Tooth's eyes get really bright and fierce, turning to Bunny.

"You've known for months and you didn't tell us?!" She demands with something close to a snarl. I've heard of mama bears protecting their cubs, but damn. This woman sounds like she could literally dismember Bunny for keeping my secret.

"I asked him to Tooth. I didn't want you all to know. I wanted to tell you once I had it all dealt with and settled." Her eyes loose their fierceness but maintain their bright alertness. She hugs me tightly again, rambling on a bit about how worried she was for me and how I should have told her sooner. Sandy floats into the doorway next to Bunny with a guilty look on his face. I scowl at him, gesturing to the sobbing Tooth and he shrugs, miming something that I think interprets to, 'It was an accident'.

"Well, I'm just glad that Pitch has helped you. I wish I could have been there for you though." She fusses a bit more before I get her to detach from me. "If you ever need to talk about anything, please talk to me Audra. You know you can talk to me, right?" She asks, her eyes begging me to say yes.

"Yeah, I know. This was just something that I couldn't tell anyone. I didn't even mean to tell Bunny, he actually annoyed it out of me. He kept pushing and pushing." We all look at him and he frowns, this time scowling at me. Then he walks over and picks me up from the bed. "Hey!" I shout, my arms going around his neck instinctively.

"Come on, you're telling North. So he doesn't bust into your room and hug ya as well." There's a smirk on his face and I can't help but smile.

"Will you sit with me while I tell him. For support?" I ask, though I know the answer. His grip gets tighter, more protective.

"Always." He promises, nuzzling my head a bit. "You'll never convince me ta leave."


	6. Chapter 6

_AN: Hey guys, I know some of you might be feeling in the mood to lynch me because of my terrible updating abilities, but what can I say? Life is a bitch that likes to punch me in the face like all the time! Anyway, there is some POV switching in the chapter. Some of it is in Audra's POV, but most of it is Pitch's POV. Why? Cuz I'm God of this fanfic and I said so. But I hope it's still good, and I hope you don't want to come at me with torches and forks by the end... Oh and Pitch swears a fair amount in this... _

_OOOOO_

I glare at Johnny with a look I can only hope conveys just how annoyed with him I am. I mean, the kidnapping thing I don't mind. The knocking me out with a well thrown apple to the head leaving me with a pounding headache now that I'm awake however...I fully intent to punch him for that. Or I would if I weren't tied to a chair.

"What...the...hell...Johnny." I hiss slowly, my eyes narrowing more

"I had to do it Audra! I didn't know if they had you brainwashed or just whipped!" He maintains, his fingers prodding my skull looking for bumps or cracks from the apple. His fingers find the sore spot and I wince. He frowns apologetically. "You told me months ago that you would be in the Amazon. I've been waiting for you for like almost half a year now! I mean can you really blame me for my reaction?" He demands. And while I guess I understand, my understanding does not lessen the anger I feel for him in this moment.

"Well I'm fine! We were under self imposed lock down until we learned to like each other! And it was working, thank you very much! They all love me now." Some of them too much. Bunny's been trying to convince me to date him for weeks! But no matter how many times I kindly say no, he keeps trying. It would be sweet if it weren't so annoying. Much like someone else I know.

"Which I find weird considering how mean you said they were being! I mean, how do you know they're legit?" He demands.

"Dude, they're they Guardians! I don't think they make a habit of being assholes! They were only acting that way because they were frustrated that Jack was gone." I explain. He frowns, obviously not caring about their motivations.

"Snap out of it Audra! You're defending the people that made you cry!"

"Johnny you're being ridiculous! All of this is just ridiculous! Now untie me so I can punch you in the face and go back to my family!" He flinches slightly. I can't help but glare at him as he kneels down in front of me and puts his hands on either side of my face.

"I'm your family Audra! Remember? Don't you remember all those nights watching thunderstorms while we sat in my apple trees? And we promised each other we'd always be there for each other. We promised we be like family to each other because nobody else wanted us around. We promised that nothing would stop us from being family." His voice cracks and he sounds so small all the sudden. Like a little kid, which is really weird. I do remember all that and more about Johnny. But I never remembered him caring so much about stupid things we said while we were drunk on cider.

"Johnny you'll always be my family." I whisper, to placate him. "But the Guardians are also my family. And if they're my family, they're yours too. This is all getting out of hand." He frowns but back off a bit. "I think you'd like them if you gave them a chance. Especially Jack Frost." He makes a noise like a snort and looks at me from under his eyelashes.

"People always say that. 'You'd like Jack Frost'." He chuckles.

"Maybe it's true." I suggest. He smirks and stands up.

"I still think they brainwashed you." He tells me, pulling out a shoddy pocketknife to hack away at the ropes. "Do you gotta punch and run, or could you stay for some cider?" From the wicked grin on his face, I can only imagine the kind of cider he has in mind.

-Pitch's POV-

I don't really mind that Jack volunteered me for the search efforts. I mean, I'd do anything for him. But why did I get paired up with the fucking Easter Bunny? The entire time we've been running around looking for Audra, he hasn't stopped whining. Like a dog without its master! It's really very annoying. And if I weren't so worried about the damn Rain Spirit, I'd take time to personally piss the rabbit off even more than he's pissing me off.

Of course I would never admit that I'm actually worried about Audra. She's a pain in the arse at best, and something I need to fix at worst. But there have been one or two times when I've been genuinely glad she's around. And right now is one of the times I seriously wish she were. She's the only one capable of winding down the rabbit when he's in this state. So as soon as I find the annoyance and whoever has her, I'm shoving the pooka towards Audra and punching the captor for making me look for the newest Guardian with the Easter Spirit. And I swear if I ever have to trek through a soggy apple tree grove with a twitching Easter Bunny ever again, I will see to it that the Last of the Pooka's joins his relatives.

Wait...apple tree grove. There's something important about apples, at least to Audra. I remember that much from her mind. There's someone very close to her that has to do with apples. I glance at the rabbit, but he's way to busy smelling pretty much everything to really be of help in my mental deductions, so no luck there. I'm sure I know who it is. Jason or Josh or John or...Johnny!

"Johnny Appleseed." The rabbit immediately perks up and turns towards me with a growl in his throat. Well that's odd.

"What's that prick got to do with anything?" He obviously has something against Johnny, and frankly I don't give a damn what it is.

"He's Audra's friend isn't he? We're in one of his groves, aren't we? And the biggest rainstorm of the year is occurring over our heads isn't it? Can we connect the dots rabbit?" I snarl, the sarcasm and bitterness dripping from my tone. He obviously doesn't appreciate my tone, but ignores it and thinks to himself for a moment.

"You think Appleseed took Audra? Why?" He demands.

"He probably got concerned about why she wasn't around anymore and went looking for her. And likely she complained to him about you lot and how cruel you were to her, so when he saw all of you acting all family like, he was confused and angry. I imagine he felt left behind and decided to take Audra back from you bastards." I explain, making it sound as though I'm speaking to a child. He doesn't appreciate this either, but I know he's too concerned about the love of his life to really pay attention to his attitude.

"How do you know any of that?"

"Believe me, rabbit, I know how it feels to be abandoned." He falters at that but his fierce mask is back before even he probably notices.

"Well if he has her, it should be easier to find them. I know both their smells, and that will narrow the field." Literally, as we are in a marshy _field_ of apple trees. I gesture for him to get on with is and he grumbles to himself before hopping off in front of me, nose in the air. I follow grudgingly, cursing to myself ever time my feet sink into the muddy ground. I really need to talk to Audra about this mud stuff. If she's gonna make it rain and flood every where she goes, could she at least have the manners to go somewhere where it won't become a wetland at the lightest of rains.

It feels like I'm pulling my feet out of a gravity well every time I take another step! It's ridiculous! This whole thing is ridiculous! Couldn't Appleseed have just popped in for a visit like any normal immortal? All he had to do was knock on the fucking door and the yetis would have told Audra he was there! They like her too much to deny her friends entrance. Hell, even I could ask for passage by way of the Rain Spirit and they'd have no problem showing me around while taking me to her room!

"Pitch!" The rabbit calls for a few meters ahead. He's digging lightly at the loose soil around a particularly large apple tree. "I can smell 'em! Both of 'em!" He tells me, his eyes alight with excitement. He keeps digging at the ground while I look up at the tree. It's a bit too perfect. Too round, and so many leaves. Like a cocoon. With a not so coy eye roll, I tap the tree, darkness shooting up and down the bark and killing the leaves until they all wilt off to show a perfect infrastructure of branches surrounding a drunk Audra Tempest and Johnny Appleseed.

"I told you I heard something." Audra giggles upon seeing us. She hiccups and I think I see the rabbit dying at how adorable it is.

"Well you would know. You're so used to hearing them now." Johnny sounds like the classic spurned boyfriend, and it all sorta clicks. My theory was correct, he wanted Audra for himself. He didn't want to share with the Guardians. And especially, I think he didn't want to share with Bunny. Apparently I'm not the only one who can tell, as Bunny has started growling at him. With another eye roll I reach up to help the heavily intoxicated Audra down. Johnny, for his part, just kinda flops out of the tree, landing in a mud puddle.

"You're really tall." Audra murmurs, then wraps her arms around me, pinning my own arms to my side. "Like a bean pole! But you're so snuggly..." She fades off, and I can hear the rabbit snickering to himself.

"Oh for fucks sake." I mutter, disentangling myself from her python grip. I give her a little shove and she falls, almost boneless, into Bunny. He immediately starts fussing over her, so I turn my attention to the dill hole who got us in this mess. Johnny Appleseed. I'm not prepared for what I see though. It can't be coincidence. He looks just like another boy Audra knew, in a past life. One who was very much a spurned boyfriend. Audra sees me looking and seems to immediately sober.

"Don't tell." She's trying to whisper it to me, but in her exaggerated inebriated state, it comes out more as a hushed shout.

"Don't tell what?" Johnny asks, wiping mud off himself.

"Nothing!" Audra trills.

"Take her home. I need to have a talk with Appleseed." I hiss to Bunny, who all too willingly helps Audra onto his back and opens a tunnel back to Santoff Claussen. I turn to Johnny, who looks 100% like he's been caught with his hands in the cookie jar. "Shall we sit, Johnny?" I give him my best grin that, sure enough, gives him a shudder. And in his state, it's more like a full body tremor. He grins lopsidedly at me though, trying to hide his uncomfortableness behind a cocky attitude. And that's a little bit too much like Jack for me to be comfortable.

"Last time I checked, we've never talked like ever, Pitch Black." He states while wandering towards a stream, and the bridge that crosses it.

"I think it's time we do, Johnny. Or should I say Luke." He freezes, and I can't help the smirk on my face as he looks at me over his shoulder. All the confidence and crass of Johnny Appleseed seems to melt off him leaving someone that very much resembles the boy who tried to force Audra into something she didn't want.

"She doesn't know I remember. And I want it to stay that way." He tells me, standing rigidly and defensively.

"You should have thought of that before you kidnapped her. But, she does seem to like that you "don't remember"." He smirks lightly. "How'd you end up being immortal anyway?" I ask, not that I'm really interested, it's just curious. I didn't know MiM was in the habit of making murdered rapists into immortals. He makes a sound like a snort and scratches his head.

"We had unfinished business, Audra and me. It wasn't MiM that made us immortal, it was our own wills. I forced myself to stay behind and when she died, I forced her to stay too. I changed my hair and personality and then became her friend. Her only friend. And at first she was cautious. She didn't believe that I could not remember her. But I played it cool enough that soon enough, she didn't want to believe that I could remember. She wanted a friend, and I was the only one offering. So we both pretended Luke never existed." He explains, seeming really proud of himself.

"And I'm guessing that you learned from your mortal life not to rush her. I'm sure you were very patient this time around." I murmur.

"I knew she'd be chosen as a Guardian. She was always too good a person, if not a bit of a recluse. Under all that angst and hard hearted anger at everyone, is a girl that everyone loved, no matter how mean she was. They all thought she was hilarious, when really she was just a bitch and they thought she was kidding. That hasn't changed."

"So you waited for the Guardians and me to help her with her fears that stemmed from your attack in her mortal life. You let us fix her while you did nothing more than be her friend."

"It was a pretty good plan, if you think about it. You guys get to do all the hard work and all I have to do, is be Johnny. Be the guy who was always there, before the Guardians were. And eventually, she'd trust me enough."

"And you'd get what you didn't in your mortal life."

"Well...I didn't get it from her anyway. She was the one that got away. And the one to shove a piece of glass into my windpipe." He looks thoughtful. And for some reason, that perfect composure and insidious person beneath it pisses me off. I wish for nothing more than to snap his neck. But I know I would never be able to explain that away. Instead I settle to surrounding us by nightmares and summoning my scythe.

"Listen here you little creep. You're a vermin that needs to be eradicated. But, unfortunately, it won't be me who does it. No, I'm going to let Audra exact her revenge, once I tell her who you really are and what your plans for her were. It might not be soon, hell I might wait a long time to tell her. I might like watching you squirm like the worm you are. But you should know that if you touch her, if you put one slimy finger on her, I'll let the rabbit take care of you. And he is an unforgiving sort of guy. I wouldn't want to piss him off if I were you. Especially not where his mate is concerned." And while Audra and Bunny really aren't mates yet, it's still worth the lie to see Luke's face pale like that.

"Why do you care what happens between me and Audra anyways?" He hisses.

"Because I've seen the inner workings of her mind you fucker. And you screwed her up bad. Worse than I've ever seen previous. Do it again, and I'll make sure there's no where you can hide." I know I shouldn't, but just to prove a point, I let my scythe do one swoop towards him, just barely catching him and making a nice cut from his shoulder to his waist. He grunts in pain and looks at me with eyes made of anger and fire. "Consider this your only warning." I tell him before dismissing my nightmares and disappearing myself.

OOOOO

The rabbit takes some convincing before he lets me in to see Audra the next day. Apparently he likes to play doctor and deemed her unfit for visitors. But really what's the point of standing guard at the door if I could just materialize inside the room from the shadows. It was after I pointed that out that he let me in to see her. And frankly, the moment I do, I realize why he's baring the entrance for most people. She looks like shit.

"What were you two drinking?" I ask with a snort as I kick back in one of the armchairs in her room. She doesn't even look up from where she is, wrapped up in her bed with her head in her hands and bedhead that could rival Jack's. She moans something in reply and I smirk. "Sorry, what was that? Couldn't hear you?" She curses and lets her hands flop to her lap.

"I said...it was apple cider moonshine." She hisses, rubbing her temple gingerly. "And I also said if you're going to be in here, you should turn off the fucking lights you prick." She adds, pushing off her covers and tiptoeing to the lights to switch them off before she slowly makes her way to the other armchair in the room.

"I assume the hangover is a bitch." I can't help how utterly satisfied I feel right now as she glares at me. "What part of your head hurts?"

"The part above my shoulders." She mutters. "Did you have something you needed to say to me, or are you just here to torture me?" She snarls.

"Well, I seriously considered just the torture, but I did have a purpose for coming, if you must know." She glances at me from beneath her hair, then winces at the exertion. "We need to talk about your friend Johnny Appleseed." I tell her. She doesn't look surprised. In face, she sighs to herself and nods slightly.

"He's still Luke. I know. I've known from the beginning. He's not _that_ great an actor." I can honestly say I didn't expect that. Given the hell he put her through on a mental and emotional level, why the fuck would she still be around him? Apparently my confusion is evident on my face because she give me a half smile. "I needed a friend. And even he was better than no one." I can't help the deep frown that settles over my features.

"You knew there were other immortals out there. Why not go to one of them instead of hanging around a living reminder of the Incident?"

"It's not that easy Pitch. Luke was the only one who could deal with my dry humor and fluctuating moods. And Johnny was the same. No one else liked me, no one gave me the time of day unless I acted all sweet and fake. And I decided I couldn't act fake anymore." She explains with a heavy tone.

"But you don't need to be around him anymore. Audra you can't be around him. Nothing has changed except his patience level. He's literally been plotting how to get in your bed since before you became immortal." She again doesn't seem the least bit surprised.

"I know he's the same Luke. I do know. And frankly I don't want him around anymore than I want Cupid around. Goddamn hippie. But I've been planning something as well, and I need this to stay our secret. You can't tell the Guardians about Luke and you can't tell Luke that I know and am plotting his downfall. It would ruin everything." I blink a few times at her before I let a grin split my face.

"My, my Audra... you never cease to amaze me. If you need any help with this plot, I beg you to include me. You have no idea how hard it was for me to not snap his neck where he stood last night." I mutter and she grins back.

"I'll keep you posted. And thank you Pitch."

"For what?"

"For caring." She states simply and smiles. And I can't help myself. Just this once, I tell myself. I give her a genuine smile back, one I save for Jack and Seraphina. And she can tell the difference.

"Anytime. Brat."

_OOOOO_

_Sorry, one more A/N... the next chapter will be the last one, and hopefully all questions will be answered. But to be sure they all are, will you please leave a review with any questions you want answered? Thanks._


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